Hakan is a grappler that doesn't play quite like other grapplers. His unique throws dominate his game and, like other grapplers, his moveset outside of throws is fairly lackluster. What makes him unique, however, is a little thing called oil.

Without oil, Hakan is nothing. Even his Oil Rocket command grab ( + P ) kinda stinks without oil, the range being no better than a regular grab. However, oil up Hakan and everything improves. The range on his Oil Rocket increases massively. Hakan also gets slippery on the ground, which lets him slide around with the execution of each of his moves. Try it with a focus attack as you charge&dmash;an oiled Hakan can advance toward the opponent mid-focus attack to give it a unique range. Because Hakan is so much better with oil, you should do your best to always stay oiled. At every opportunity (such as a knockdown), trigger the oil. If you get hit during the oiling animation, you still get the full effect.

When outside grab range, work on getting in. A number of Hakan's normals, like s.HK, + HK, and + MP, inch Hakan closer to the enemy. From further out, an Oil Slide ( + P ) will slip you in and even catch a lot of people off guard, as it hits low—just don't get predictable with the move.

To combat projectiles, Hakan has a couple of weapons. Most obvious is the Guard Position ( + PPP ) which causes Hakan to duck down and slip under fireballs. An EX Oil Slide will also slip through projectiles, and an EX Oil Shower will also let fireballs through.

Hakan's Oil Combination hold ultra combo ( + KKK ) is definitely the better of his two ultra options. Not only is it comboable (see below), but it also gives Hakan a unique weapon. The ultra is a crazy-good anti-air maneuver, beating out basically every possible jump-in attack.

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Combos

c. MK xx + P P

Uhhh, okay, this combo is stupid simple, right? What makes it interesting is an oiled-up Hakan that sort of slide into the c.MK with a forward dash. When he's all oiled, Hakan's dashes carry a bit of movement forward even after the actual dashing is over, which means you can execute the c.MK while still moving forward. This gives the attack tons of range and makes this stupid simple combo pretty useful.

j.HP s.LP s.LK s.LP + LK

Hakan's not much of a combo man, but this little link string is pretty effective and totaly safe to throw out. That's all I really have to say about that.

j.MP + KKK

If you connect Hakan's j.MP as an anti-air, it knocks the opponent into a special fall that lets Hakan juggle him. If you don't have meter, a simple Oil Slide will combo. Or if you've got enough revenge meter, you can even catch the opponent with the Oil Combination Hold ultra.

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Moves List

( normal )

+ PPP

Guard Position - Hakan crouches down and covers his head, slipping under basically every fireball in the game. You can control how long Hakan stays on the ground by how long you hold down the input, though he won't stay down forever. You can also use the move to evade other attacks. For example, try standing over a downed opponent and baiting a wake-up Shoryuken. As long as you're not directly on top of the opponent, the Shoryuken should whiff over the top of the Guard Position, letting you catch the opponent with a counter.

( normal )

+ LP

Hakan Smash - Seems to us just like Hakan's regular s.LP with maybe just an ounce of extra range. If range could be measure in ounces.

( normal )

+ MP

Hakan Tackle - Hakan steps forward while punching. It's quick and good for keeping up pressure, though a little slow to recover.

( normal )

+ HP

Hakan Spear - A huge HP with solid range (for Hakan, at least) and massive power. Hakan also steps forward while throwing the punch, giving it some pressure use.

Step Knee - Great range, solid speed, and it moves Hakan forward, which is good for pressure. Best of all, it hits low—if the opponent isn't crouch blocking, he gets hit.

( special )

+ K

Oil Shower - This move affects Hakan in a number of positive ways: 1) Increases both the damage and range of Hakan's command grab Oil Rocket; 2) Increases the distance of his backward and forward dashes; 3) Increases the distance Hakan slides forward during normal attacks that move him forward (like his Hakan Spear); 4) Allows Hakan to slide backward while performing normal moves (if you hold backward while performing them...). The most important of these bonuses is #1—the increased range of his Oil Rocket grab is completely vital to playing Hakan well. The strength of the kick determines how long the effect lasts—an EX version lasts longest and lets a fireball pass through. Also note that if you're interrupted by a hit while oiling up, you still get the effect. If you know the opponent is going to throw out a weak attack that you don't mind eating, you might as well activate a HK Oil Shower and take the hit. But don't do it if you expect the opponent has a combo lined up...

( special )

+ P

Oil Slide - This move passes under most fireballs. Sagat's Low Tiger Shot will still hit, though an EX Oil Slide will get through even that. Use this for getting pass aggressive fireballers, but don't get predictable 'cause it's pretty punishable on block.

( special )

+ P P

Body Press - If you know the Oil Slide is going to connect, you should always add on this extra Body Press. However, if you're not sure the Oil Slide will connect, beware. Attempting the Body Press won't increase the time it takes to recover from a blocked Oil Slide, but it will prevent you from FADCing the attack to safety.

( special )

+ P

Oil Rocket - A solid command grab that becomes quite awesome when Hakan is oiled up. The range of the grab increases greatly when he's oiled. Don't be surprised if the grab whiffs when dry.

( special )

+ K

Oil Dive - Grabs standing and airborn opponents (but not crouching ones). You can hold down the K button to delay Hakan's jump, which is good for messing with opponents' timing and can also increase the horizontal range of the attack.

( super combo )

+ K

Flying Oil Spin - Basically the same as the Oil Dive but doing much more damage. Most interesting, it also becomes invincible to fireballs, no matter how long you delay the jump. But because you'll need to EX Oil Shower so much, it's unlikely you'll use his super combo much.

( ultra combo )

+ PPP

Oil Coaster - Strangely, it doesn't seem to get the same range increase of Hakan's standard Oil Rocket grab when Hakan is oiled up. At least the range is better than a non-oiled Oil Rocket, but we still think this is Hakan's weaker ultra combo.

( ultra combo )

KKK

Oil Combination Hold - This is basically the ultimate anti-air. If an opponent jumps at you, with or without an attack, trigger the Oil Combination Hold and you're virtually guaranteed free damage. It's a great deterrent to jump-ins when you've got the meter filled and gives Hakan a unique tool that we think is important to successfully campaigning him.